Coffee & Career Hour

Why Your New Year Goals Keep Failing And How To Fix Them

• Armine & Maria Jose

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We contrast new-year energy with honest capacity, then move from broken resolutions to aligned goals that reflect season of life, values, and context. We share how releasing prestigious pursuits can restore joy, and how inner work powers career strategy that sticks.

• why resolutions fail without structure and alignment
• clarifying internal vs external goals
• honest assessment of capacity and season
• reconnecting with purpose before tactics
• releasing goals that no longer fit
• practical steps for SMART but humane plans
• reflection prompts to guide 2026
• blending mindset work with resumes and branding
• free tools and a path to deeper coaching

Quick little coffee break. If you're loving these conversations and want tools to support your career and personal growth, head over to careerise.org
And make sure you come hang out with me on Instagram at Career ConfidentLatina
And if you're craving deeper guidance, the Clarity and Confidence Bootcamp is now open
Everything you need to know about it is on my website careerise.org but you can always reach out to me as well for any questions or more information
And don't forget there are tons of free career mindset and lifestyle resources waiting for you at careerise.org
And if you're ready for deeper clarity and confidence, make sure to join the CCB bootcamp while you're there


CareeRise: www.careerrise.org

CareerConfidence: www.careerconfidence.online

Follow Us on IG!

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  • @ careerconfidentlatina

Follow Us on LinkedIn:

  • https://www.linkedin.com/in/maria-jos%C3%A9-hidalgo-flores/
  • https://www.linkedin.com/in/akulikyan/
SPEAKER_02:

Life sometimes teaches you, humbles you to like recognize okay, this is what I can handle. And that doesn't mean that you're less than or your worth isn't defined by whatever goal that you think you should be achieving. You are listening to Coffee and Career Hour. We are your hosts. I'm Armina. And I'm MJ. Two career counselors and friends chatting about all things life and career.

SPEAKER_00:

So grab a cup of coffee and join us.

SPEAKER_01:

Welcome back, everybody. Happy 2026, Arminik. Happy 2026. So excited for a new year and a fresh start.

SPEAKER_00:

You know, I'm uh not a fan of New Year's, but I think this year I came in a little bit different. I'm still not like a full-on fan, but I feel different.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, how so?

SPEAKER_00:

I don't like the whole new goals, new things, new me, but I do feel like a cleanse of energy was needed. And I felt I left 2025 very heavy and coming into 2026 with very light energy, very fun, very positive and optimistic.

SPEAKER_02:

Oh, I love that. I'm so glad you were able to kind of experience this energy cleanse and feel refreshed starting the new year. Yeah. Mine is kind of opposite, actually. Um, I feel like usually every year I'm into like, okay, what am I letting go this year? What am I what are my goals for the year? But this year I feel like the new year snuck up on me. We traveled for the holidays, so coming back, then there's a lot of traditional things we're doing in the culture and in Armenian culture for New Year's. So I feel like I'm still in New Year's celebrations, even though it's mid-month already. And um, I don't feel this like fresh new start. I just feel like I'm I'm going, I'm running on the treadmill. So a new interesting experience for me.

SPEAKER_00:

Okay. Okay. I definitely think that New Year's is a different experience for everybody, but I hope that our listeners are coming in with at least one thing positive looking forward to or changing or doing. And it is needed. Personal reflection in New Year's is a natural time where people tend to do them. So I was a little bit uncomfortable doing mine because I'm a New Year's hater and that's fine. But I think it was needed for me just where I was coming from, and it felt so good. So if you feel a little out of touch or like you're it's not your new year yet, I've seen people have been have been posting like, oh, this Monday will be my new year and my start. If that's you, that's okay. And just know that we're here supporting you and and getting ready for the new year.

SPEAKER_02:

I love that because you can honestly start fresh at any time, right? We don't need a calendar date to tell us we need to start fresh. And I think that's maybe part of why traditional goal setting doesn't work for the new year, because we always see people setting goals that they're gonna start doing more, whatever, whether it's working out, eating healthier, whether it's making a career change or whatever their goals are for that year. And then you see like within the first two weeks of January, people are already falling off the goals that they set for themselves. So I'm curious, why do you think that happens, MJ?

SPEAKER_00:

I think one, there's like not a plan there, right? It's kind of just like I'm gonna do this thing or it this will happen. And we kind of don't think about all the steps that it takes to get there and plan it out. And it sounds very elementary, right? Like step one is this, step two is this, or using the smart goal method, right? Being specific, um using measures at some point, time and results and stuff like that. And people don't tend to do that. Like in education, we teach a lot of individuals how to do SMART goals and step by step on how to achieve something. And you know, your average person may not. And those are like it's an infrastructure on how to achieve that goal. And when that's not there, it's okay and it's natural to assume that you're gonna, I don't want to say fail, but it's not gonna happen. And because that's missing, that tends to happen to a lot of people. And there's a lot of expectations we put on ourselves, right? We can easily say, I'm gonna go walk two miles a day. But if we don't say at what time with with who, if it's a with a buddy or for how long or in a time frame or schedule it in, it's easily gonna be missed. So there's a lot that goes into this behind the scenes to help yourself be successful.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, yeah. And I think why maybe sometimes people don't get as specific with their goal setting or think about it in so much depth is because I think sometimes our goals are actually not aligned with our authentic self or where we're at in life at that time, what the context of our situation is at that time. And a lot of times, especially with social media and everything, it's like seeing other people reach certain goals or live a certain lifestyle, and then what it looks good. So then we think that's what we want and we set these quote unquote goals for ourselves, but then we don't actually realize how much internal work we need to do to be able to actually live out that goal, you know.

SPEAKER_00:

Absolutely. In one of my recent reels, I talked about how growth has a lot to do with like clarity and alignment, and to experience that clarity and alignment, you also have to grow in that sense. And a lot of people, there's there's gaps, right, in in where we're going and what we're doing. But alignment is a huge part of it because we can do as much as we want, but if we're not connected to it, is it really like authentic to ourselves and supporting our our growth overall?

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, yeah, absolutely. So I think that authenticity piece and really taking a step back to reassess like who are we right now and what where am I in life right now is the first step to even before we set a goal for ourselves. And and that's why the new year doesn't matter. The goal could be set at any time in the year once you have that clarity and understand what your whatever success or happiness or joy or fulfillment looks like for you, right? And so it's like internal versus that external goal. I think we need to definitely start with the internal piece.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah. I and that's kind of the hardest, right? That's like almost like sitting in front of the mirror and having a heart to heart with yourself and kind of going through what are the things we want to do, where are we at? What should my goals be? And that's hard for some of us to kind of look and be that honest, right? Because it's easier to do the external things than the internal. I think I've grown in that space a lot in the last two years where I'm I feel comfortable doing that with myself. And it's okay to have to not know to start in a rough place and kind of get there. Um, something that I've learned is you need to be honest with yourself. And you can't hide from the the truth, which is kind of like the same thing with being honest, but you can't beat around the bush with yourself. You have to kind of sit there and just face it. And it comes from an ugly place sometimes or a dark place. But you to grow and get up and go to that lighter space and that lighter feeling and better version of yourself, you have to kind of get yourself there.

SPEAKER_02:

Well, yeah, to admit to yourself, like, okay, I actually am not in a place right now where I can do this thing, even though it looks like on the external, it looks like a good goal, or I, you know, I want that lifestyle or whatever, but I'm actually not capable of handling that right now. So what am I capable of or what is realistic for me? And then finding peace, I think, within that and recognizing, I don't want to say your limitations, but just recognizing the reality of what you're in. I think that's what I've been working on a lot too, because there's, you know, as human beings, we always want more and we're always striving for the next thing. And I think that's natural, especially if you're an achiever like you and I are. But you know, I think life sometimes teaches you, humbles you to like recognize okay, this is what I can handle. And that doesn't mean that you're less than or your worth isn't defined by whatever goal that you think you should be achieving. Quick little coffee break. If you're loving these conversations and want tools to support your career and personal growth, head over to careerise.org. I've got tons of free resources like guides, templates, reflection workbooks, you name it, all designed to help you get clarity and build confidence.

SPEAKER_00:

And make sure you come hang out with me on Instagram at Career ConfidentLatina. I'm always sharing career tips, mindset reminders, get readies with me, and a lot of behind the scenes of my life and motivation.

SPEAKER_02:

And if you're craving deeper guidance, the Clarity and Confidence Bootcamp is now open. It's my signature eight-week program where you get structure, reflection, and coaching to help you move forward with alignment and purpose.

SPEAKER_00:

All right. Grab a sip of coffee and let's get back into it. Yeah. And that's hard. That's hard for people, especially when we think about career and let's say, like someone who's been like a veteran, right? Like they've been in their job or their role for like 10, 15, 20 years. And it's like, why am I not getting promoted? Why am I being overseen? How come I feel invisible in my role and things like that? So it is hard to think about like, well, if I'm doing all these things and like where should I be going? Am I ready for that type of role? Because sometimes we can have this internal conversation with ourselves, but not see the external of what's happening as well.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah. I've been seeing this a lot with clients too, especially clients who are like applying to grants or programs or like applying to the next step. Um, I can't tell you how many times, like I'll ask the client, tell me why you're interested in this, and then they start breaking out in tears because so for so long they've only focused on their accomplishments of like, I gotta do the next thing and the next thing, I gotta get this internship, I gotta get this job, I gotta do this, add to my resume, whatnot. And like they're so accomplishment focused, but they can't get to the root of why they want to do what it is they want to do. And I'm like, that's the most important piece in your graduate applications, in your cover letters for jobs, like you're gonna have to get deeper about that. So I think you know, taking that step back and recognizing why am I even doing what I'm doing? And is it like coming from external pressures of this looks good? So I should be applying to graduate school or I should be applying to this whatever internship because it looks good, or is it because you actually want to do it?

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, I know I've had that that battle with myself. And I think this is the first year where this is the first year since I've graduated grad school, which is almost five years ago, which is kind of crazy to say that I'm I'm like okay with not being an achiever more in education, meaning my own degrees.

SPEAKER_02:

Oh my god we've had so many conversations. I've cried on hearing about that.

SPEAKER_00:

Yes. Yeah. And it's and it's because I think it was more of an external thing of like seeing other people do it and being a woman of color in an educational space and wanting to make change is also a huge thing. But I can also like the letters behind my name don't define what that support and what that what that impact looks like. Just because I'm not a doctor, I don't have a doctorate degree, doesn't mean my impact will be less than. I understand the importance and recognize it and value women, right? Women of color, people of color who have the doctorate degrees. But for myself, I had to really sit down and ask like, is that what MJ wants? Is that aligning, or is it just because she's always been great at school and loves the school environment and never had a real college graduation? I know, sad face. I cry internally all the time around graduation season because I didn't get that because of COVID. It's fine. But I had to come to terms with that. And I recently, well, around the new year, I was like, dude, you're not gonna walk in this year again with this. Do I want to, do I not? And right before the start of the new year, I had my sign of this is not for you. Like this is not, this is not the thing that's gonna make you feel like you're unlocking the rest of the world and your career. And I'm okay with that. Like I am perfectly fine with that and I'm happy and I feel like I've been able to enjoy what I do and not worry about like the what ifs. And I'm okay and I'm happy for everybody who's doing it too, but I'm better and more happy for myself that I can be okay with that decision.

SPEAKER_02:

Oh, I love that. Doesn't how does it feel? Does it feel like weight off of your shoulders that you found this clarity?

SPEAKER_00:

It does because it's like an expectation. I feel like your community, right? Like internally, massive expectation. In family, there's like, of course, your parents and your family want you to do the best possible thing. Um, but I felt it more in my community, the pressure of like having to want to be this person that has, you know, this accolade to do this type of impact. But I am already that person. Like she is already here. I'm just making myself feel down because I don't have right, like this type of thing. But it feels like a massive weight lifted. And I think I can be at peace because I'm constantly chasing the next thing as an achiever. And I can like slow down and drive 35 miles an hour and chill out and not feel like I'm needing to get to the next thing and the next freeway and drive as fast as I can. Yeah, it feels so nice.

SPEAKER_02:

Oh, that sounds amazing. I remember being that same way fresh out of grad school too, or you know, in high school, I was always like, I can't wait to be in college. When I'm in college, I can't wait to graduate. I'm in grad school, I can't wait for the like real-world big girl job. And it's like, what are you rushing for? And for me, it was after grad school when it was like, okay, I'm done with my master's, and I went straight from kinder kindergarten to master's degree. Now it's like I actually have to just be present and work in this space and like not strive for the next thing. And who knows, maybe a doctorate in the future. At the time, I was thinking, but I knew that wasn't my immediate next step because I wanted to work in the field. And that was like, what do I do now? Like, who the hell am I now? Like, what hobbies do I have? What interests do I have? And it was like reconnecting with my authentic self. I remember going through that phase um at that time in my life. And I think you know, it's very common, especially for people who have been in school back to back, to now all of a sudden you have all this free time and you have some silence, and you have to sit with that silence and sit with yourself, and that's hard to do.

SPEAKER_00:

It is, it is. It's something that I've been having to learn um for the last like four or five years when I've been fighting with myself of what does this look like. But I'm so glad. Like, I can't tell you again, respect all the dogs. I mean, I married one for God's sake. Like, I I respect them and and they're they hold such like immense power, right? And and impact in these communities. But like I am so happy. I don't have to like force myself to be that because I think that's what it was. It was like, well, like everybody else is doing it, like I can also create impact. But is that really like how much more? Like I'm already doing that here. Like I am here. And I don't know, it just feels so good to like sit in the silence and listen and be my authentic self. Cause I think I lost a big part of who I was in 2025. Like my spark was gone. I was grouchy and was like annoyed. And yeah, you could say it has a lot of things to do with the world around us, but I lost like who MJ was. And figuring out and being at peace with that brought a lot of that authentic of who I am back into me because I'm I'm here, like I'm excited.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, yeah. And that energy comes through right in everything that you do. So when you lose your spark, it affects everything, performance in every aspect of your life. So it's so, so, so important for all of us to remember like the importance of decluttering and making space to actually sit with ourselves and to let go of what's no longer serving us and revisit like, are my goals mine or are they because of society and externally what looks good on paper, what looks good to other people? Because we do live in that society where like those what's on paper, you know, I think gives us value, or we think it gives us value, but that's not what it really is, right? Internally, we're all worthy and valuable regardless of what level of achievement you have, you know?

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

But it's hard to remember that. So I think that, you know, the biggest piece here with goal setting and actually finding goals and sticking to goals that are gonna work for us is to do this work, do this internal work and let go of those expectations and release those old beliefs that we have about ourselves and our identities so that we can actually become the best version of ourselves. And those next goals that we set could be realistic ones that we genuinely want to pursue. And we're then if we're if that's the case, we're more likely to achieve them.

SPEAKER_00:

I love that. I think uh a little bit of a prompt, if you will, either for mental reflection or or physical like journaling and stuff, or if you're like someone who likes to talk to yourself, this may help. Is who are you leaving in 2025 and who do you want to become in 2026? I love that. I hope this this helps you and in knowing you're not alone if you're struggling with this too, because it's not easy to to do this whole new year, new me, and and all these other things and and all the goals and feel like you have to accomplish something because it's also okay if you're perfectly fine wherever you are. Absolutely.

SPEAKER_02:

And for all of this, everything we've been talking about in terms of doing all this internal work has actually brought me to creating a new program through Career Rise that I'm really excited to share with you all. It's called Clarity and Confidence Bootcamp. And essentially, it's an eight-week group coaching experience where I will be guiding my participants through all of this internal work, like mindset shifts and healing work, thinking about our inner child and our past traumas and how those may have impacted our like values or our confidence level or how what we believe we can achieve. So, doing a lot of that mindset work coupled with some of your traditional career work like resume building or personal branding and how we can actually put forth the best version of ourselves on paper, but before doing that, we do a little bit of that internal work. So I wanted to create this program because I see such a big need for it, and everything that I've been studying in the manifestation world, in the career space, and all of the conversations I have with my clients, it always yields itself to our childhood traumas and our internal beliefs and our inner child is really what's driving all of the decisions that we make. So working through some of that, at least finding clarity or like recognizing oh, I did experience this in my childhood that's shaped what I believe is already a really big step to finding more clarity and being more authentic in our life. So I hope that this program. speaks to some of you and I would love to see you there participating. Everything you need to know about it is on my website careerise.org but you can always reach out to me as well for any questions or more information.

SPEAKER_00:

All right I guess that wraps up our first episode of 2026. I hope you are all all having a great start to your year and Armin and I wish you the best. If you have things you want to share with us topics you want to hear you know where to find us you know where to message us and we hope you enjoyed this episode.

SPEAKER_02:

Thank you for spending time with us today. We hope this episode gave you something meaningful to carry into your week.

SPEAKER_00:

And if you want more support on your career journey or just a career cheerleader, I'm here. Follow me on Instagram at Career ConfidentLatina for tips and encouragement.

SPEAKER_02:

And don't forget there are tons of free career mindset and lifestyle resources waiting for you at careerise.org. And if you're ready for deeper clarity and confidence, make sure to join the CCB bootcamp while you're there.

SPEAKER_00:

We're always cheering for you your growth, your goals and the person you are becoming. Thanks for tuning in to Coffee and Career Hour.

SPEAKER_02:

We'll see you in the next episode